Andy Reid: Chiefs 'have a ton of respect for Denver'

The team's head coach addresses the media, during Wednesday's presser

Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid QuotesNovember 13, 2013

OPENING STATEMENT:

“Alright, as far as injuries go, Mike Catapano is really the only one to mention and he’ll practice today. He’ll do what he can do and then we’ll go from there. I’ll address the Dwayne Bowe situation now. It is a legal matter, and that’s the way we’ll handle it and let it run its course there. Dwayne will play. He’ll start. There are rules and regulations put in place and that’s (what) we’ll abide by, the rules and regulations. We’ll make sure that we take all of the information in as it goes through the process here. That’s where we’re going with it. (Those are) the facts I’ve got for you. Listen, we look forward to the great challenge of playing the Denver Broncos; they’re a heck of a football team. We’ll make sure that we respect them, obviously. Then we’ll make sure that we study them, and then get ourselves ready to play a good football game. I’m sure the question will come up about the Dwayne part being a distraction. I think this football team is focused in on the Denver Broncos and solely on the Denver Broncos. That’s how I felt this morning. I can’t tell you about the future. I can tell you about this morning. I didn’t see any part of this that was a distraction, and that’s important that we focus in on the good football team that we’re playing in the Denver Broncos.”

Q: What role does the altitude play when playing in Denver?

REID: “It hasn’t. Probably in particular at this time in the year, I think the guys are into football shape. We’re not running a marathon; we’re playing a football game. So, I haven’t seen that being an impact. I played in college at BYU, obviously, which is (elevated), so I understand all of that. But, I don’t think that will be a factor in this game.”

Q: Will Bowe play his regular role in the game?

REID: “Yes, he will.”

Q: What has helped with your success, coming off of bye weeks?

REID: “I’ve been blessed with good players and good coaches. I don’t know if there’s a secret to that. If there is, I can’t give it to you. I don’t know what that is. I’ve always given the guys time off, maybe when that wasn’t the popular thing to do. The league has got regulations on that now, so the players get some time off, no matter what the coach does during a bye week. We give them an extra couple of days; we give them the week off, which we normally do. I’ve normally done that in the past, and it’s worked out okay.”

Q: Talk about the decision behind Dwayne and letting him play.

REID: “Listen, I can’t. I’m not going to go there. I’m just telling you what I’ve done. I can tell you the rules and regulations put in place. This is a pending thing.”

Q: What are the rules and regulations?

REID: “I’ll let you do that. You can look all of those up. Make sure that you get everything though.”

Q: Did you feel like there wasn’t an option?

REID: “Just read through the rules and regulations; that’s what I can tell you. Whatever they are, he’s playing and he’s starting. That’s what I can tell you.”

Q: How do you compare Bowe’s situation with controversies you’ve faced with the Eagles?

REID: “Listen, again this is a pending thing that there are rules and regulations for, just going through the process.”

Q: Is it not that big of a deal in context of the game, then?

REID: “Well, that’s what you’re saying. I addressed him and had that opportunity to talk to him. I’ll leave it at that. There are laws, there are rules and there are regulations, so I abide by those.”

Q: What did Dwayne tell you about this incident?

REID: “Listen, I can’t get into all of that. I’m not going to get into all of that.”

Q: Was he apologetic?

REID: “Listen, Dwayne has been a team player, since I’ve been here. He doesn’t want to bring any problems to the table. That’s not what he wants to do.”

Q: Can you say when you first found out about the incident?

REID: “You know what; I would rather just leave it with my opening statement. I don’t know what’s crossing lines and not crossing lines here, from a legal standpoint. It’s a legal matter and I don’t want to—I’m not here to disrupt that part of it. I try to follow that as close as I can.”

Q: What are your thoughts going up against Denver’s offense and Peyton Manning?

REID: “We have a ton of respect for their offense, for Peyton (Manning), for the things that they’ve accomplished this year. We understand all of that. They’ve done a great job. It’s important that we prepare ourselves to play a good football team. I think it’s two good football teams playing each other. I think it’s a good defense playing a good offense and that’s what this is all about.”

Q: Have you seen a difference in Peyton with the ankle injury this week?

REID: “No, I haven’t. Same guy.”

Q: What have you seen from Peyton Manning that makes him an elite quarterback?

REID: “He’s a smart guy that works extremely hard and is very accurate. He knows everything that is going on within his offense. Over the years, he has dissected it and figured it out back and forward. He’s a good football player.”

Q: So you think it’s his mind more than anything else?

REID: “Well no, I would tell you he’s talented. There’s talent there. There is some athletic ability that takes place there. He has that figured out.”

Q: What do you hope that the rest of your team learns from Dwayne Bowe’s circumstances?

REID: “We learn every day. We learn new things every day. There will be things here that we will learn from.”

Q: Do you feel like the trust of some of these guys has been violated?

REID: “There are certain things that I’m not going (to speak to). I handle things with the football team. I handle things with the individual. Then, I make sure I follow, the best I can, the rules and regulations and the law. As I’m sitting here, I’m not ignoring questions; I’m not doing that. I’m staying within those guidelines there that I have. I don’t mean to be cold about that, but that’s how we go about it.”

Q: Does it effect this team in the locker room, with something like this and with a leader like this?

REID: “No. I’m not going there. Let’s go back to the Broncos.”

Q: As far as the timing of the game, is there any extra preparation that goes into a later game?

REID: “You put yourself back in the preseason clock, when you’re playing the night games. You’ve been there, you understand the schedule. The schedule won’t change from that point and then you get yourself ready to go. You’re not going to play the game, before you play the game, which can happen. You keep yourself out of that mode. Then, when it’s time to go, you go.”

Q: What have you done since coming here to build up for these conference games, since they mean so much?

REID: “Both of the teams have done well to this point; that makes it very exciting. That’s what this is all about. From a fan’s standpoint, it’s great. From a player’s standpoint, you better go through the process of getting yourself right. Will there be great energy? There will be great energy, yeah. That’s expected, when two good teams play each other. There will probably be a little bit more there than maybe normal, but you have to make sure that whatever extra energy that you have, that you’re functioning, in the offense, defense and on special teams. If you’ve created so much energy that you can’t function, then you have a problem.”

Q:When you took the job, did you look at the Broncos as the team to beat?

REID: “Well, yeah, I was aware that they (had won the division); I watched what they did. I saw that, just being a part of the NFL. Did I figure they would be good again? Yeah, I figured they would probably be pretty good. They were the champions of the AFC West, so that’s a team that you have to get after, if they were on the same pace that they were last year, which they are. We have all of that. I understood that taking the job.”

Q:Did you feel like you needed to match up your players with the Broncos, when you were building the team?

REID: “I would tell you that you’re not sitting here building your team to beat the Denver Broncos. That’s not what you’re doing. There’s a fine line there that you’re trying to accumulate as many players as you can at all of the positions, so not only can you compete against the Denver Broncos, but these other teams in the National Football League that have good players. That’s really what you’re doing. To say that John (Dorsey) sat there and brought in players to say that we matchup with Denver, I don’t think that was the way that went.”

Q:For instance, what about Sean Smith? He seems like he would be a good fit matching up against their two big receivers?

REID: “I’m just stating a fact here, if you follow kind of what John (Dorsey) has done through his career in personnel, he has always gone after big corners. Sean (Smith) is different, he’s a huge man, the size of a linebacker really, and there aren’t many of those in the league. But he has always had big corners and has gone after that type of a player and that was before Denver was in the vision. When he builds a team, that’s what he likes. So, Sean wasn’t brought in to match up. That’s not what it was for. He was a good player and had good size. Obviously, Al (Harris) coached him at Miami and kind of knew a little bit about him, and it worked that way.”